The owners of a site earmarked for a hotel, leisure centre and restaurant complex have been given three more years to get their scheme off the ground.

The Carroll Group which owns the 12-acre site in Mountnessing has been granted another period of outline planning permission.

The land bordering Roman Road, Chelmsford Road and Lower Road was once regarded as a festering eyesore and a blight for the villagers.

It included a scrapyard and was previously owned by Sainsbury's which sought permission for a giant store.

But last year the Carroll Group completed decontamination work, flood measures and levelling in readiness for the development.

And while talks are continuing with various parties for a hotel of up to 150 beds, separate health and fitness complex plus an eating house such as a family pub restaurant, no deals have been signed.

Planning bosses refreshed the outline permission at Brentwood Council's planning development control committee last week.

The Warley-based JTS Partnership is acting as planning consultants for the Carroll Group.

Their spokesman Graeme Frall said he hoped the long-awaited development would go ahead in 2004.

He said: "Some more plans have just come in with a couple more offers from another specific hotel developer. The figures don't match up yet but I am optimistic we can get there.

"The construction of an access road through the site is a very expensive item. The Carroll Group would like to build the road but they need to have an offer which covers the cost of that."

Lower Road resident Mike Farley campaigned for years for something to be done about the site.

He said: "We don't want talk now, we want action. We want to see them get started on the development."

Published Wednesday January 28, 2004

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